Sosa may return, but not to Cubs

GM Hendry, who did all he could to dump slugger, has bigger issues to resolve

November 06, 2006

The Cubs' brain trust will engage in some lively discussions this week at organizational meetings in Arizona, trying to come to a consensus on which middle-of-the-order outfielder to pursue.

Should the franchise try to outbid everyone for free agents Alfonso Soriano or Carlos Lee? Hope to acquire center fielder Vernon Wells from Toronto or right fielder Gary Sheffield from the Yankees? Or perhaps go after a midlevel free agent, such as Luis Gonzalez, and put most of the available resources into improving the rotation?

Over the weekend, yet another alternative surfaced that's so audacious it probably would have to be labeled Option Z:

Bring back Sammy.

Former Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa told the Associated Press he wants to come back next season and claimed to have many suitors willing to take a chance.

"I still have a lot of passion for the game, and I'm in shape," Sosa said. "I want to get to 600 home runs before saying goodbye."

Of course, Sosa said goodbye to the Cubs without even knowing it at the end of the 2004 season when he made a premature exit during the first inning of the season finale, then lied about it.

A security camera videotaping the players' parking lot allegedly revealed that Sosa had left at the start of the game, leading to the end of his Cubs career. Sosa eventually claimed no such tape existed, but he could not account for the witness who saw him leave.

Two years later and the frosty relationship between the Cubs and Sosa is thawing. Sosa even agreed to an interview recently with Vine Line, the fan magazine produced and edited by the Cubs' marketing department, and said he intended to return to the good graces of the organization, though he didn't necessarily mean as a player.

"I wanted to leave Chicago the way it was, but there were some circumstances that weren't handled the right way, and the blame was [put] on me," Sosa told Vine Line.

"I was the only big icon there. Everything that I did was a big deal. But whatever happens off the field doesn't have to carry on for life. Chicago is always going to be big in my heart. When the time is right, I'm going to go back."

Is the time right?

No. Not even close.

Interim President John McDonough, who was still the marketing chief when Vine Line interviewed Sosa, harbors no ill feelings toward the former slugger. But not even Jesse Jackson could initiate a summit meeting between Sosa and general manager Jim Hendry, who made it his mission to dump Sosa after the '04 season, no matter how much of the contract he had to eat.

Hendry has more pressing decisions to make, like how much to bid for Japanese starter Daisuke Matsuzaka. Hendry has until 4 p.m. Wednesday to submit a sealed bid for the right to negotiate with the 26-year-old right-hander, then has 30 days to sign him if his Japanese team, the Seibu Lions, accepts the Cubs' offer.

No Japanese pitcher since Hideo Nomo has commanded as much attention as Matsuzaka, who throws in the upper 90s and has a screwball he calls a "gyroball." He's going to cost plenty, perhaps $20 million just to win the rights to negotiate with his agent, Scott Boras.

But if the Cubs are serious about turning it around quickly, they'll have to bring in a No. 1 or No. 2 pitcher. And the only two free agents of that quality are Barry Zito and Jason Schmidt, both of whom will have exorbitant price tags as well.

It's easy to make a mistake on a free-agent starter and pay dearly for years. Carl Pavano, A.J. Burnett and Russ Ortiz are just a few of the recent busts.

Nevertheless, Hendry is probably in a gambling mode with two seasons left on his contract, and he certainly has the payroll flexibility to pull off a huge contract. Life, after all, is full of risks, as Sosa discovered the day he walked out on the Cubs.